Democracy Now!

Vice President Mike Pence is in Colombia today for his first stop in a regional tour, where he and the Trump administration are facing widespread opposition to President Trump’s threat of launching a possible U.S. military intervention in Venezuela. President Donald Trump: “We have many options for Venezuela. And, by… »

President Trump on Thursday ramped up his threats of hitting North Korea with “fire and fury.” In a letter delivered to the State Department Thursday, 62 House Democrats called on Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to de-escalate tensions, calling Trump’s words “belligerent” and “reckless.” Elsewhere, a group of Korean-American elected… »

Outside the White House, protesters called Wednesday for the Trump administration to negotiate a solution to the North Korea crisis. Under the so-called freeze-for-a-freeze deal, North Korea would temporarily halt nuclear and missile tests in return for a reduced American military presence in the Korean Peninsula. This is peace activist… »

Attorney General Jeff Sessions moved Thursday to cut off federal aid to four cities accused by the Justice Department of failing to turn over jailed immigrants to federal immigration authorities. The move will deny funds from a program combating drug trafficking and gang violence to the cities of Baltimore, Maryland;… »

In Iowa, two Catholic Workers said Monday they had carried out multiple acts of sabotage aimed at stopping the construction of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline, which stretches from North Dakota through South Dakota, Iowa and into Illinois. Jessica Reznicek and Ruby Montoya said that on Election Day last… »

The director of the Office of Government Ethics, Walter Shaub Jr., says the Trump administration has so undermined ethical standards that the United States is “pretty close to a laughingstock at this point.” Shaub is resigning today. He’s been critical of President Trump on a slew of issues, including Trump’s… »

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been convicted on corruption charges and sentenced to nine-and-a-half years in prison. Lula, widely considered one of Brazil’s most popular political figures, is the front-runner in the 2018 elections. We look at how this development could impact his presidential bid, and… »

Scientists are warning that the Earth’s sixth mass extinction is already underway. In a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers said billions of populations of animals have disappeared from the Earth, amid what they called a “biological annihilation.” They said the… »

In Turkey, more than 40 academics and university workers were arrested at two Istanbul universities on Monday, amid Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s widening crackdown. Among those arrested on charges of alleged terrorist links was professor of political science Koray Caliskan. This is Koray Caliskan speaking on Democracy Now! last… »

By Amy Goodman and Denis Moynihan President Donald Trump’s long-promised repeal of Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, edges closer to reality, as the Senate releases its secretly written version of the House’s American Health Care Act—the very bill that Trump first championed, then recently reportedly called “mean.” The Republican… »